Security Analysts Dr. Ishmael Norman has urged the government to take the matter of the ‘galamsey queen’, Aisha Huang, and other Chinese nationals arrested for engaging in illegal mining seriously.
According to him, Aisha Huang and her Chinese accomplices have been sent by the Chinese government to destroy Ghana’s cocoa sector.
Speaking in a Citi TV interview monitored by GhanaWeb, Dr. Norman alleged that China, which recently started producing cocoa, wants to replace Ghana as a cocoa production hub in the world.
“I like to take the position that Aisha Huang is bigger than we are actually saying. And it will one day come out that Aisha Huang was actually an operative working both for the Chinese government and herself.
“China is now becoming a big player in the cocoa business. It tells you that it has an agenda. China has always had an agenda when it comes to Africa. They know our leaders are weak, they know our leaders cannot let go of a nice-looking Chinese woman, they will take the bait, they will go for the sex, they will go for the money.
“So, I do believe that there is subterfuge on the part of the Chinese government and support for Aisha Huang and what she is doing. Because the more we destroy our cocoa farms (the more China benefits). Nineteen hectares of land used for cocoa have been destroyed by ‘galamsey’ in Ghana. China will use this information to increase its cocoa production by 19 hectares,” he said.
Meanwhile, the ex-Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Inusah Fuseini, has suggested that Ghana might be banned from exporting its major export, cocoa, because of the menace of illegal mining (‘galamsey’).
According to him, because of ‘galamsey’ activities, some harmful chemicals, including mercury, have been found in cocoa beans, making them unhealthy for consumption.
“Galamseyers are not only destroying our environment, but their activities are also now targeting the economic backbone of the country. I hope you have heard that European Union (EU) is saying that there are traces of mercury in our cocoa. It is striking at the backbone of the economy,” he said in Twi, in a Neat FM interview monitored by GhanaWeb.
Fuseini, who is also a former Member of Parliament for Tamale Central, said that Ghana must start seeing the menace of ‘galamsey’ as a threat to its survival and putting serious measures to stop it.
“Even if we stop galamsey today, it will take the environment, including the water bodies, close to 100 years for a full restoration. That is the environmental damage. That is why elsewhere, such activities of people that damage the environment are treated as environmental crimes and are called crimes against the environment,” he said.
ghanaweb.com
